Jim Markham is a highly acclaimed Beauty Industry icon who has led an amazing trailblasing career from being a prominent celebrity hair stylist to developing and innovating over 300 products for five highly successful hair care companies, four of which he founded and five owned including: ColorProof Evolved Colour Care, PureOlogy Serious Colour Care, ABBA Pure and Natural, Markham Products, and Sebring International.

With each new venture the Markham name has become synonymous with authentic, premium performance products that serve as an Industry standard. To date, under his leadership, Markham’s combined companies have generated over $1.2 billion in retail sales. He is best known for developing the first luxury professional line exclusively for colour treated hair and for pioneering sulphate-free shampoos that have revolutionized the way colour treated hair is cared for.

Brilliant Product Developer and Entrepreneur

Markham was inspired to launch ColorProof Evolved Colour Care in 2011 after realizing that colour care technology hadn’t advanced much since he launched PureOlogy ten years prior. Markham states, “Technology is always improving, including ingredient technology. What was good enough 10 years ago is no longer good enough. Just as you wouldn’t use a 10 year-old phone or computer, why use 10 year-old hair care technology when much more advanced technology is available.” With the persistent urging of colleagues and stylists, and his ceaseless passion for product development, Markham was inspired to make a valiant return to revolutionise the Industry once again. ColorProof features a full line of professional, luxury products designed exclusively for colour-treated hair combining the latest ingredient technology with best-in-class formulas to create a new standard in colour care, protecting hair color from start through finish.

Markham is very involved with the product development process at every level. Markham states, “I’ve built an elite team of some of the best chemists, researchers and ingredient experts in the world who are dedicated to sourcing and utilising next generation ingredients. We collaborate to create products that are the finest quality with the most advanced technology, bar none.”

The company takes a unique approach to product development. Many manufacturers, Markham explains, conceive a product looking at price point first and performance last which ultimately limits the quality of ingredients that can be used.

“We’re not limited by the cost of goods,” he says. “We begin our product development process by determining, first and foremost, the product’s desired performance with superior ingredients and then work backwards – determining the price point last. This is the only way to ensure true innovation.”

Markham personally directs his team to select the very highest quality, newest ingredients available to achieve optimum performance of his dream product and then empowers his inner circle of testers including highly trained educators, stylists and consumers, who provide valuable feedback on all aspects of the product. Products are not released until they are proven to exceed the performance of any other product in their category. “ColorProof is the next generation in luxury color care,” Markham continues. “Every product in the line is best-in-class and provides maximum color protection for hair that’s shiny, beautiful, vibrant, healthy and instantly youthful-looking.”

Highly Acclaimed Stylist to the Stars

Markham’s product development skills and passion for the Beauty Industry were fuelled by his talents as a renowned hair stylist. He had an extensive list of celebrity clientele, and was also one of the most publicised stylists in the world and one of the first hair stylists to receive film credits. “My celebrity clients demanded the very best results, which could only be attained through proper technique paired with high performance products, which inspired me to begin developing formulas that had never existed before and that had far superior performance,” says Markham. With his reputation and expertise, Markham was able to charge the then unheard-of rate of $55 for his haircutting services, coining the phrase “The $55 Haircut”. Markham still makes TV and film appearances and has been the subject of major feature stories.